SciWorks in Winston-Salem NC Offers Hands-on Science Fun

SciWorks in Winston-Salem, NC © Katrena

Where can you learn about laws of motion, play a piano with your feet, play an operation game the size of my mom's dinner table, pet a snake, and enjoy a planetarium show? SciWorks in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, offers this nice selection of indoor and outdoor family friendly activities and more!

Located at 400 South Hanes Mill Road in Forsyth County, SciWorks encourages kids of all ages to explore and learn about science in a wide variety of ways. The science center also offers themed programs and exhibits on special days throughout the year.

Learn about Interesting Animals

© Katrena

SciWorks also has quite few regular exhibits, including:

• Healthworks
• Kidsworks
• Physics Works
• Soundworks
• TechWorks
• Mountains to Sea
• Science Lab
• Collections
• Millennium Plaza
• BioWorks
• Environmental Park
• Planetarium

A family can easily spend a day in SciWorks – the first time I visited, we were there for hours and did not even have a chance to see everything. They do have indoor and outdoor areas for eating with a microwave inside, so I would highly recommend packing a picnic and taking one's time while visiting SciWorks. They offer memberships, group rates, and four-pass family packs for folks who are likely to visit several times in a year who might be interested in a discount. Staff members have been very friendly and helpful and the special programs were well-organized and quite educational.

I plan to write more about each of the main displays, but I'll give basic tips for what I discovered at SciWorks in this article. Here are the highlights of the trips we have taken to SciWorks.

If you are planning a visit to SciWorks, check their official web site first to get their hours of operation. They tend to open fairly late on Saturdays (11:00 a.m. according to the site on today's date), so this might be a good day to sleep in or to plan something else for early morning hours. My kids love to go to the Jerry Long YMCA, so it works well for me to hit a class on the way there if I get an early start.

They have several different planetarium shows of various lengths. Some are geared toward smaller kids while others are longer. You cannot get into the planetarium shows after they start and cannot re-enter if you must leave early, so it is a good idea to plan the schedule around the shows with a scheduled bathroom break right before the show. They have restroom facilities right by the planetarium and in several other areas inside.

Take the time to check out the cool paintings on walls on the planetarium. This can be particularly interesting if your kids are learning about the solar system in school. My kids thought the planetarium shows were really neat as movies were coordinated with various star shows on the ceiling. The planetarium was dark and felt great on a hot summer day.

Sometimes you might be standing in the lobby to realize that someone is shooting huge puffs of air at you! The kids really thought that was cool and had to head over to the guy who was demonstrating some fun air shooters. He also had one of those huge balls where the kids can put their hands on it while they charge it with electricity to make their hair stick up. The kids thought that was awesome!

Lift Your Spirits and Each Other at SciWorks in Winston

© Katrena

All of the areas have hands-on learning opportunities, so it can be fun to let the kids decide where they wish to explore. If you turn to the right after checking in at the front desk, my kids absolutely loved lifting one another in a big yellow seat. The older ones could hold a spinning tire and turn themselves in a swiveling chair. Each of the displays has science-related information for those who wish to learn more about how things work.

Explore Science With the Kids in Forsyth County

© Katrena

If you travel around the huge pendulum, you'll see a fun playground-type area. My kids love playgrounds and were naturally drawn to the slide that looks like it is in a big tree. They also have some areas where the kids can go through and under areas for those who like to explore. They have a lot of stuffed (taxidermy) animals in this room. They have a really cool fish that looks like it swims upside down in one of the large fish tanks in this area.

See Animals Like an Iguana at SciWorks

© Katrena

If you travel out of this room behind the playground tree, you'll find a hallway that leads to the next large exhibits. My kids loved seeing the animals along this hallway. You can also learn about which animals lay which eggs and see animal footprints. Make sure to go all the way to the back of the hallway so that you don't miss any of the animals!

The music room was a big hit with my kids. You can make all sorts of music in fun and very distinct ways. I play the piano, so I really liked the huge piano that you play by stepping on the large keys built into the floor. They have a few simple pieces of music up if you want to try your hand, er foot, at playing them!

Learn How the Body Works

© Katrena

Kids can learn quite a bit about how the body works, from how a baby grows inside the womb to how DNA strands fit together. My kids all thought the huge teeth were cool and loved getting the chance to clean them with a large "power brush." I remember playing a game called Operation when I was a kid. They have one of these games that is the size of an adult! You can also work a life-sized skeleton puzzle.

The smallest kids may particularly like the room just past this area in which they have a little puppet stage, play food and grocery baskets, large building blocks, and a variety of dolls and playthings. The next room is rather large and offers several opportunities for the kids to try their hand-eye coordination and speed. They often have traveling exhibits in this area as well.

Fun Outdoor Educational Activities

© Katrena

The outdoor area is rather quiet and serene with just a few animals, so if the kids are getting overloaded or just need to get outside, this is a nice trail. Most of the animals would not get close enough to pet, but hand sanitizer was available in the barn. My kids particularly liked seeing the otter near the end of the trail as well as ducks and deer. They have some pretty flowers that attract area butterflies and hummingbirds during warmer months. When we last visited, they had some construction going on, so I'll be curious to see what they create outside at SciWorks.

Overall, SciWorks was a great opportunity to learn about science in a hands-on way. I particularly enjoyed the times we went when they had special programs and how nicely the staff members and volunteers interacted with the kids and encouraged them to learn about science for themselves. My kids have learned about protecting the environment, snakes, and African American scientists and more. I give SciWorks in Winston-Salem a big thumbs up!

Find more fun and educational family activities at the Travel NC With Kids site map.